1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a digital home information integrating system in which various audio, visual, computer and communication (AVCC) apparatuses and various living environment electronics apparatuses arranged at user""s home are cooperated to establish a home network system and digital media home information processed in the AVCC apparatuses and digital environment home information processed in the living environment electronics apparatuses are integrated in the home network system.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, a user has used a personal computer at his home to make good use of his experience in a local area network (LAN) and an internet operated for business in his office, so that the user can receive not only self-management information but also services of various external information such as an electronic mail.
Also, because various digital information apparatuses such as a digital video camera (DVC), STB and a digital video disk (DVD) used for picture information, audio information and/or character information and various digital information-communication apparatuses such as a portable telephone have been widely used, the user can receive or transmit various information from/to various media at his home. Information processed in the digital information apparatuses and the digital information-communication apparatuses is called digital media home information, and the digital media home information is processed in various digital audio, visual, computer and communication (AVCC) apparatuses.
In addition, it is desired to prepare a social infrastructure. For example, it is argued how an automatic meter-reading system for automatically checking the consumption of electricity at user""s home, the consumption of gas at user""s home and the consumption of water at user""s home and an overall security system for detecting crime-prevention information, gas-leaking information, fire occurrence information for each home are prepared as the social infrastructure. Also, because the number of aged persons living alone is increased and the requirement of in-home care for the aged persons is increased, an in-home care system for each aged person has been required as another social infrastructure.
Information processed in the social infrastructure is called digital environment home information, and the digital environment home information is processed in various living environment electronics apparatuses.
2.1. Previously Proposed Art
The digital media home information is processed for each home according to Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Standards.
Also, because a data receiving/transmitting speed for the digital environment home information is low and a data volume of the digital environment home information is small, it has been argued that the digital environment home information is processed according to a spectrum diffusion method in a home bus system using an electric power line. In cases where the digital environment home information is processed according to the spectrum diffusion method in the home bus system, because an electric power line is arranged in user""s house regardless of whether the house is planned to be newly-built or the house has been already built, it is not required to newly arrange the electric power line in the user""s house.
2.2. Problems to be Solved by the Invention
However, in cases where the digital media home information and the digital environment home information are integrated and processed at use""s home, there are following drawbacks.
In cases where the digital media home information is processed for each home according to the IEEE Standards, it is also required to process the digital environment home information according to the IEEE Standards. That is, to operate the automatic meter-reading system for automatically checking the consumption of electricity at user""s home, the consumption of gas at user""s home and the consumption of water at user""s home and the overall security system for detecting crime-prevention information, gas-leaking information, fire occurrence information for each home, it is required to arrange a digital environment home information network operated according to the IEEE Standards at all rooms of user""s house. Therefore, the user requires a large amount of capital investment. In particular, in cases where a user""s house has been already built, it is at variance with the reality to newly arrange the digital environment home information network in the user""s house. Also, because a data receiving/transmitting speed and a data volume for the digital environment home information differ from those for the digital media home information, it is difficult to connect the living environment electronics apparatuses used for the digital environment home information with the AVCC apparatuses used for the digital environment home information.
Also, in cases where the digital environment home information is processed according to the spectrum diffusion method in the home bus system, it is required to process the digital media home information according to the spectrum diffusion method in the home bus system. However, because a data receiving/transmitting speed for the digital media home information is high and a data volume of the digital media home information is large, it is difficult to process the digital media home information according to the spectrum diffusion method in the home bus system.
An object of the present invention is to provide, with due consideration to the drawbacks of such a conventional digital home information integrating system, a digital home information integrating system in which a network for the digital media home information having a high data receiving/transmitting speed and a large volume of data and a network for the digital environment home information having a low data receiving/transmitting speed and a small volume of data are integrated and processed at a low cost.
The object is achieved by the provision of a digital home information integrating system comprising:
a first digital home information outputting apparatus for outputting first digital home information having a large volume of data at a high data transmitting speed;
a first digital home information network for receiving the first digital home information output from the first digital home information outputting apparatus and transmitting the first digital home information at the high data transmitting speed;
a second digital home information outputting apparatus for outputting second digital home information having a small volume of data at a low data transmitting speed;
a second digital home information network for receiving the second digital home information output from the second digital home information outputting apparatus and transmitting the second digital home information at the low data transmitting speed;
digital home information integrating means for connecting the first digital home information network and the second digital home information network to receive the second digital home information transmitting through the second digital home information network and transmit the second digital home information to the first digital home information network; and
a first digital home information receiving apparatus for receiving the first digital home information transmitting through the first digital home information network at a high data receiving speed and receiving the second digital home information transmitting through the digital home information integrating means and the first digital home information network at the high data receiving speed.
In the above configuration, when a first operation is performed, a large volume of first digital home information output from the first digital home information outputting apparatus is transmitted to the first digital home information network at a high data transmitting speed and is received by the first digital home information receiving apparatus at a high data receiving speed.
Also, when a second operation is performed, a small volume of second digital home information output from the second digital home information outputting apparatus is transmitted to the second digital home information network at a low data transmitting speed and is transmitted to the first digital home information network at a high data transmitting speed through the digital home information integrating means. Thereafter, the second digital home information is received by the first digital home information receiving apparatus at a high data receiving speed.
Accordingly, because the first digital home information network, in which the first digital home information is transmitted, and the second digital home information network, in which the second digital home information is transmitted, are integrated by the digital home information integrating means, the user can use both the first digital home information and the second digital home information at his home.
It is preferred that the high data transmitting speed of the first digital home information outputting apparatus and the high data receiving speed of the first digital home information receiving apparatus are equal to or more than 105 bits per second, and the low data transmitting speed of the second digital home information outputting apparatus is less than 104 bits per second.
In cases where an audio, visual, computer or communication apparatus for outputting and receiving digital picture information, digital audio information or digital character information is arranged at user""s home, the audio, visual, computer or communication apparatus is connected with the first digital home information network because a data transmitting/receiving speed of the audio, visual, computer or communication apparatus is usually equal to or more than 105 bits per second. Also, in cases where a self-management apparatus such as an energy detecting apparatus, a security information detecting apparatus, a health care information detecting apparatus or a control apparatus is arranged at user""s home, the self-management apparatus is connected with the second digital home information network because a data transmitting/receiving speed of the self-management apparatus is usually less than 104 bits per second. Therefore, each of various apparatuses arranged at user""s home can be connected with either the first digital home information network or the second digital home information network.
Also, it is preferred that a plurality of first digital home information outputting apparatuses are connected with the first digital home information network to respectively output first digital home information having a large volume of data to the first digital home information network at a high data transmitting speed, a plurality of second digital home information outputting apparatuses are connected with the second digital home information network to respectively output second digital home information having a small volume of data to the second digital home information network at a low data transmitting speed, and an average of the high data transmitting speeds of the first digital home information outputting apparatuses is 100 or more times an average of the low data transmitting speeds of the second digital home information outputting apparatuses.
In this case, even though the first and second digital home information networks are arranged at user""s home, the first digital home information and the second digital home information can be economically processed at user""s home.
Also, it is preferred that the second digital home information network is formed of a home wireless system, an infrared light system or an electric power line system.
In this case, because the second digital home information network is arranged at user""s home at low cost, the digital home information integrating system can be obtained at low cost.